Jonathan Drouin and Patrick Roy: the unlikely prolific duo
The Canadiens arrived in Salt Lake City late yesterday afternoon. A very big challenge awaits them this week, as they cross swords with Utah, Vegas and Colorado. Three games in four nights, in three different cities, with several players on the sidelines and NOT the last change..
But above all: three games against Western teams capable of creating offensively, defending en bloc and hitting that would make the playoffs if they started today.
Jakub Dobes and Samuel Montembeault had better be fit.
Meanwhile, the Islanders feel right at home in the team-of-the-hour seat in the East. Patrick Roy’s men are 7-3-0 in their last ten games.
There are several (individual) things going well for the Isles..
1. Patrick Roy may be in the running for Head Coach of the Year. #JackAdams
Remember that he won the Jack-Adams Trophy in 2013-14, when he was in charge of the Avalanche.
2. Bo Horvat has 14 goals and 11 assists in 23 games this season. He also has a plus-13 rating. He is the third-highest scorer and 18th-highest scorer in the entire circuit.
3. Matthew Schaeffer (15 points in 23 games) is one of the favorite candidates for the Calder Trophy (along with Ivan Demidov). It’s easy to see why Mathieu Darche agreed to part with the services of Noah Dobson last June.
4. While we’re on the subject of Noah Dobson, it’s worth noting that Emil Heineman has nine goals and six assists so far this campaign. Mathieu Darche was desperate for Emil Heineman, and he was right on target with a player who had already been traded twice since his draft.
5. Jonathan Drouin (14 points in 22 games) is one of the best Québécois players in 2025. Who would have thought that Drouin and Roy would become a working duo in the NHL?
Drouin plays more than 18 minutes per game, often alongside Mathew Barzal. In particular, he gets several minutes per game on the first power play.
6. Ilya Sorokin and David Rittich are doing what Jakub Dobes and Samuel Montembeault are failing to do in Montreal this season: being consistent and giving their team a chance to win night after night.
I know, the Islanders and the Canadiens both have similar records (.609 vs.595). However, the Islanders are showing character, especially behind the bench; Patrick Roy sent a message to his players when he flipped a switch after Mikko Rantanen.
Romanov will be out for five to six months, and the coach showed his players that he just wouldn’t take it. It helps to make your players want to work their butts off for you afterwards.
As the Habs head west, the Islanders are preparing for five games at home, four of them against association rivals.
If you’d asked me to bet on which team was going to be ranked higher at the American Thanksgiving, between the CH and the Isles, I’d have put all my money on the CH… but I guess Patrick Roy still has a few tricks (acquired through experience) that Martin St-Louis hasn’t yet inserted into his coaching.
It’ll come.
In the meantime, I can only rejoice for Patrick and his boss, Mathieu Darche. Here’s hoping their injury list (Alexander Romanov and Jean-Gabriel Pageau) doesn’t get any longer in the coming weeks..
Only one Canadian team in the playoffs?
We’re just a few days away from Thanksgiving in the U.S., and historically, the teams in the top eight of each association have a very high probability of making the NHL spring playoffs.
Of the seven Canadian teams, how many would make the playoffs if they started tonight? Only one: the Ottawa Senators.
Senators: 3rd in the Atlantic Division
Canadiens: 10th in the East
Maple Leafs: last in the East
Oilers: 10th in the West
Jets: 11th in the West
Canucks: 14th in the West
Flames: 15th in the West
In short, 2025-26 isn’t looking good for the teams north of the Canada-U.S. border. Why not? Probably because the weaker appeal of Canada vs. the U.S. markets – for 1001 reasons – is still at work.
Let’s wait and see if the Canadiens, Oilers and Jets can get back on track in the coming weeks, but for now, there’s plenty to worry about..